Again …

There’s been another bombing.

Who did it? Why did they do it? No one has any answers, yet. All we know for sure is that 3 people are dead, and 144 injured – from the equivalent of a pair of claymore mines. That’s the part that sickens me most – not that any part of this doesn’t sicken me. They weren’t just bombs: they weren’t designed to make a flash of light and sound … they weren’t intended to destroy property … they weren’t intended to just get our attention …

They weren’t bombs. They were anti-personnel mines. Weapons designed to kill and cripple as many people as possible. The intent wasn’t to give people a clean death – it was to leave them mutilated.

They weren’t sophisticated: black powder, and ball bearings. A lot of ball bearings. Driven by the force of the blast, those would tear into anyone within a dozen yards of the thing. Runners. Family members. Spectators. Shredded. God only knows how many have lost limbs, how many will die of their wounds, or how many will live in agony …

What the fuck is the sense of it? What sort of point does crippling people make? Whose political agenda is aided by such a crime? Or maybe it’s not about politics: maybe it’s about sick, twisted, hatred …

The single most striking thing about terrorism is its complete, 100% failure rate. Terrorists have not ever achieved their ends by this means – yet they keep doing it. They can’t, can’t be stupid enough to think this will achieve anything – so all that’s left is hatred … revenge. How can you hate people you’ve never met? Condemn scores of them to live mutilated? What kind of sick bastard derives any pleasure or satisfaction from such an act?

No one has any answers. I think no one will ever have a satisfying answer.

I would almost certainly agree, except, sadly, like most Americans, I know only one language – and it isn’t Polish. I feel, as always, humbled by the fact that most Europeans are cosmopolitan enough to teach their children three languages at least …

Obviously, I’m going to be embarrassed if your comment turns out to be “You’re a freaking idiot who doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and should have your mouth stuffed with horse dung!” – but, I figure I kinda deserve it, simply by virtue of the fact that I was too lazy to learn any other language!

In fairness, though, if I had learned another language, it would almost certainly not have been Polish: German, French, Spanish, Italian, and modern Greek would likely be my choices. Sorry.